The Pandemic May Have Lasting Effects on Young People’s Mental Health
The pandemic has taken a toll on the mental wellness of many people around the world, and some experts are concerned about the lasting effects it could have on adolescents and young adults especially.
“The risk for the future is that we have a group who have spent almost a year and a half of their early life in a total blackout, gaining no experience or human capital,” Massimiliano Mascherini, the head of social policy at the EU’s foundation for living and working, told The Guardian. “They may represent a part of the workforce that will suffer throughout their lives.”
A survey by the American Psychological Association (APA) from 2020 found more than 7 in 10 Generation Z individuals reported symptoms of depression and reported the highest level of stress compared to other age groups. “Life cannot be lived in social networks or video calls. We need people around us to make sense of ourselves,” a Dutch student tells The Guardian. “My mental health deteriorated so badly. I had to start antidepressants,” an undergraduate student from the U.K. told the Guardian.
